1521 Portuguese navigator Ferdinand Magellan reached the Philippines, where he was killed by natives the following month.1802 Congress authorized the establishment of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, N.Y. 1836 The Republic of Texas approved a constitution. 1850 The novel The Scarlet Letter, by Nathaniel Hawthorne, was published for the first time.1882 The U.S. Senate approved a treaty allowing the United States to join the Red Cross.1915 The Federal Trade Commission was organized. 1955 The Ballad of Davy Crockett, by Bill Hayes, reached the number one spot on the pop music charts and stayed for five weeks.1963 Peter, Paul and Mary released the single "Puff The Magic Dragon."1964 Paul Hornung, ‘The Golden Boy’, and Alex Karras were reinstated to the NFL after an 11-month suspension for betting on football games.1968 U.S. troops gunned down hundreds of unarmed civilians in the village of My Lai during the Vietnam War. 1985 Terry Anderson, chief Middle East correspondent for The Associated Press, was abducted in Beirut. (He was held captive until December 1991.) 1988 Former National Security Adviser John M. Poindexter, former White House aide Oliver L. North and two others were indicted on charges relating to the Iran-Contra affair. 1994 Figure skater Tonya Harding pleaded guilty in Portland, Ore., to conspiracy for covering up the attack on rival Nancy Kerrigan. 1995 Astronaut Norman Thagard became the first American to visit the Russian space station Mir. 1998 The Vatican expressed remorse for the cowardice of some Christians during the Holocaust, but defended the actions of Pope Pius XII. 1998 Rwanda began mass trials for the country's 1994 genocide. 2000 Independent counsel Robert Ray said he had found no credible evidence that first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton or senior White House officials were involved in seeking the FBI background files of Republicans. 2002 Brittanie Cecil, 13, was struck by a flying hockey puck during an NHL game between the hometown Columbus Blue Jackets and the Calgary Flames; she died two days later.2003 Rachel Corrie, a 23-year-old American college student in Gaza to protest Israel operations, was killed when she was run over by a bulldozer while trying to block troops from demolishing a Palestinian home. 2005 A judge in Redwood City, Calif., sent Scott Peterson to death row for the slaying of his pregnant wife, Laci. 2005 A jury in Los Angeles acquitted actor Robert Blake of murder in the shooting death of his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley. (A civil court jury later ordered Blake to pay $30 million to Bakley's four children.) 2006 Iraq's new parliament met briefly for the first time; lawmakers took the oath but did no business and adjourned after just 40 minutes.

0493 According to tradition, St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, died in Saul.1776 British forces evacuated Boston during the Revolutionary War. 1870 The Massachusetts Legislature authorized the incorporation of Wellesley Female Seminary (later Wellesley College). 1897 Motion pictures of a championship prize fight were taken for the first time as ‘Sunny’ Bob Fitzsimmons knocked out ‘Gentleman’ Jim Corbett for the world heavyweight title. 1905 Franklin D. Roosevelt married his distant cousin, Eleanor Roosevelt, in New York City; the wedding was attended by President Theodore Roosevelt, FDR's fifth cousin, who gave his niece away. 1906 President Theodore Roosevelt first used the term "muck-rake" as he criticized what he saw as the excesses of investigative journalism in a speech to the Gridiron Club in Washington. 1907 America’s first bowling tournament for ladies began in St. Louis, MO.1910 The Camp Fire Girls organization was formed. 1941 The National Gallery of Art opened in Washington, D.C. 1942 Gen. Douglas MacArthur arrived in Australia to become supreme commander of Allied forces in the southwest Pacific theater during World War II. 1950 Scientists at the University of California at Berkeley announced they had created a new radioactive element, which they named "californium." 1963 Bob Cousy of the Boston Celtics played his last regular season basketball game after 13 years in the National Basketball Association.1966 A hydrogen bomb that had fallen from an American bomber over the Mediterranean Sea was located by a U.S. midget submarine. 1967 Snoopy and Charlie Brown, of the comic strip Peanuts, made the cover of LIFE magazine.1969 Golda Meir became prime minister of Israel. 1970 Eddie Holman received a gold record for the single, "Hey There Lonely Girl."1985 William Schroeder set a record for heart transplant patients as he reached his 113th day of life with the artificial organ.1993 Actress Helen Hayes died at age 92. 1999 The International Olympic Committee expelled six of its members in the wake of a bribery scandal. 2003 Edging to the brink of war, President George W. Bush gave Saddam Hussein 48 hours to leave his country. Iraq rejected the ultimatum. 2005 Baseball players Rafael Palmeiro and Sammy Sosa testified before Congress that they hadn't used steroids while Mark McGwire refused to say whether he had.

Chart Toppers

1948Now is the Hour - Bing CrosbyI’m Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover - The Art Moonie OrchestraBeg Your Pardon - Francis CraigI’ll Hold You in My Heart (Till I Can Hold You in My Arms) - Eddy Arnold

1766 Britain repealed the Stamp Act. 1813 David Melville of Newport, Rhode Island patented the gas streetlight.1902 Enrico Caruso recorded 10 arias for the Gramophone Company.1909 Einar Dessau of Denmark used a shortwave transmitter to converse with a government radio post about six miles away in what's believed to have been the first broadcast by a "ham" operator. 1918 The first seagoing ship made of concrete was launched at Redwood City, CA.1922 Mohandas K. Gandhi was sentenced to prison in India for civil disobedience. 1931 Schick Inc. marketed the first electric razor. 1940 Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini held a meeting at the Brenner Pass during which the Italian dictator agreed to join in Germany's war against France and Britain.1953 Major-league baseball announced the first team relocation since 1903 as the Boston Braves told of their plans to move west to Milwaukee, WI.1954 RKO Pictures was sold, becoming the first motion picture studio to be owned by an individual (Howard Hughes bought teh studios for $23,489,478).1959 President Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the Hawaii statehood bill. 1959 Bill Sharman of the Boston Celtics began what was to be the longest string of successful consecutive free throws (56 in a row) to set a new National Basketball Association record.1965 Soviet cosmonaut Aleksei Leonov went on the first spacewalk. 1967 The Beatles received a gold record for their single "Penny Lane."1970 Brook Benton received a gold record for the hit single, "Rainy Night in Georgia."1974 Most of the Arab oil-producing nations ended their embargo against the United States. 1985 The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) announced plans to merge with Capital Cities Communications to form Cap Cities/ABC.1985 A pro football record was set by Denver and Houston of the USFL with a total of 112 passes thrown in the game.1986 The U.S. Treasury Department announced that a clear, polyester thread was to be woven into bills in an effort to thwart counterfeiters.2000 Taiwan ended more than a half century of Nationalist Party rule by electing opposition leader Chen Shui-bian president. 2002 Brittanie Cecil, 13, died two days after being hit in the head by a hockey puck during an NHL game between the hometown Columbus Blue Jackets and the Calgary Flames. 2005 Doctors in Florida, acting on orders of a state judge, removed Terri Schiavo's feeding tube (she died 13 days later). 2005 Former Connecticut Gov. John G. Rowland was sentenced to a year in prison and four months under house arrest for corruption.

No man needs a vacation so much as the man who has just had one. Elbert Hubbard, US author (1856 - 1915)

as someone who just came back from a vacation, i second that. haha

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Behind the Press"Hey, look. Somebody put the lead in the first paragraph." -- From Overheard in the NewsroomAbout another Reporter entering the newsroom after an intense interview: Reporter #1: “Look at him, he’s got that after-sex glow.”Reporter #2: “That’s the glow I get when a good story comes together.” -- Overheard in the Newsroom

1776 The first documented return of the swallows to San Jaun Capistrano (every March 19th).1831 The first bank robbery in America was reported, as the City Bank of New York City lost $245,000.1917 The Supreme Court upheld the eight-hour work day for railroads. 1918 Congress approved daylight-saving time. 1928 Freeman Gosden and Charles Correll left WGN radio in Chicago to head across town to WMAQ radio, where they changed the name of their show to "Amos & Andy."1931 Nevada legalized gambling. 1945 Kamikaze planes attacked the U.S. carrier Franklin off Japan, killing about 800 people. 1945 Adolf Hitler issued his so-called "Nero Decree" ordering the destruction of German facilities that could fall into Allied hands. 1949 The American Museum of Atomic Energy opened in Oak Ridge, Tennessee.1951 The Caine Mutiny, a novel by Herman Wouk, was published for the first time.1953 The Academy Awards ceremony was televised for the first time, with comedian Bob Hope serving as host. 1954 The first televised prize fight shown in living color; Joey Giardello knocked out Willie Troy in round seven of a scheduled 10-round bout at Madison Square Garden in New York City.1954 The first rocket-driven sled on rails was tested in Alamogordo, NM.1962 Bob Dylan's self-titled debut album was released. 1976 Buckingham Palace announced the separation of Princess Margaret and her husband, the Earl of Snowdon, after 16 years of marriage. 1977 The staff of WJM-TV had a going-away party, as the last episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show was broadcast.1979 The U.S. House of Representatives began televising its day-to-day business. 1985 IBM announced that it was planning to stop making the PCjr consumer-oriented computer.1987 Televangelist Jim Bakker resigned as chairman of his PTL ministry organization amid a sex-and-money scandal involving a former church secretary, Jessica Hahn. 1988 Two British soldiers were shot to death after they were dragged from a car and beaten by mourners attending an Irish Republican Army funeral in Belfast, Northern Ireland. 1990 Latvia's political opposition claimed victory in the republic's first free elections in 50 years. 1995 After giving up an attempt to become a major league baseball player, Michael Jodan returned to pro basketball with his former team, the Chicago Bulls. 2001 California officials declared a power alert, ordering the first of two days of rolling blackouts. 2003 Mahmoud Abbas accepted the new position of Palestinian prime minister. 2003 Aan American-led coalition launched a war against Iraq, beginning with the launch of U.S. cruise missiles and precision-guided bombs aimed at Saddam Hussein near Baghdad.

Fenway Park, in Boston, is a lyric little bandbox of a ballpark. Everything is painted green and seems in curiously sharp focus, like the inside of an old-fashioned peeping-type Easter egg. It was built in 1912 and rebuilt in 1934, and offers, as do most Boston artifacts, a compromise between Man's Euclidean determinations and Nature's beguiling irregularities. - John Updike

1345 Saturn/Jupiter/Mars conjunction; thought to be the "cause of plague epidemic."1815 Napoleon Bonaparte entered Paris, beginning his Hundred Days rule. 1816 US Supreme Court affirms its right to review state court decisions.1852 Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin published (Boston).1865 A plan by John Wilkes Booth to abduct President Abraham Lincoln was foiled when Lincoln changed plans and failed to appear at the Soldier’s Home near Washington, D.C.1896 Marines landed in Nicaragua to protect U.S. citizens in the wake of a revolution. 1897 First known intercollegiate basketball game, Yale beats University of Pennsylvania 32-10.1914 First international figure-skating tournament held in US, New Haven.1934 Babe Didrickson pitches hitless inning for Philadelphia A's in exhibition game against Brooklyn Dodgers.1935 "Your Hit Parade" makes its debut on radio.1942 General MacArthur, in the Philippines, vows, "I shall return."1944 Mount Vesuvius, Italy explodes.1954 First newspaper vending machine used (Columbia Pennsylvania).1968 President Lyndon Johnson signs a bill removing gold backing from US paper money.1969 Beatle John Lennon marries Yoko Ono in Gibraltar. 1969 US President Nixon proclaims he will end Vietnam War in 1970.1973 Roberto Clemente elected to Baseball Hall of Fame, 11 weeks after his death.1976 Patricia Hearst convicted of armed robbery.1982 Joan Jett & Blackhearts' "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" goes #1 for 7 weeks.1984 Senate rejects amendment to permit spoken prayer in public schools.1985 For the first time in its 99-year history, Avon representatives received a salary instead of only commissions.1987 FDA approves sale of AZT (AIDS treatment).1989 Baseball announces Reds manager Pete Rose is under investigation.1990 Los Angeles Lakers retire Kareem Abdul-Jabbar's #33.1990 Namibia became an independent nation, marking the end of 75 years of South African rule. 1991 Michael Jackson signs $65M, six album deal with Sony records.1991 Supreme Court rules unanimously employers can't exclude women from jobs where exposure to toxic chemicals could potentially damage fetus.1995 Beatles song, "Free as a Bird," is released; first Beatles single since their 1970 breakup.1995 A doomsday cult released sarin nerve gas in five Tokyo subway stations, killing 12 people and injuring more than 5,500. 1996 Erik & Lyle Menendez found guilty of killing their parents.1997 Liggett Group, the maker of Chesterfield cigarettes, settled 22 state lawsuits by admitting the industry markets cigarettes to teenagers and agreeing to warn on every pack that smoking is addictive. 1999 Bertrand Piccard of Switzerland and Brian Jones of Britain became the first aviators to fly a hot-air balloon around the world nonstop. 2002 Seven Israelis died when an Islamic militant blew himself up on a packed bus. 2002 Arthur Andersen pleaded innocent to charges it had shredded documents and deleted computer files related to Enron. 2003 U.S. and British forces invaded Iraq from Kuwait.2004 The U.S. military charged six soldiers with abusing inmates at Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

1991Someday - Mariah CareyOne More Try - Timmy -T-Show Me the Way - StyxI’d Love You All Over Again - Alan Jackson

Quote of the Day

I keep the subject of my inquiry constantly before me, and wait till the first dawning opens gradually, by little and little, into a full and clear light.Isaac Newton, English mathematician & physicist (1642 - 1727)

1788 Gustavus Vassa petitions Queen Charlotte to free enslaved Africans. 1790 Thomas Jefferson reports to President Washington in New York as Secretary of State. 1791 Captain Hopley Yeaton of New Hampshire becomes first commissioned officer in USN. 1826 The Rensselaer School in Troy, New York becomes the first engineering college in the United States.1843 Preacher William Miller of Massachusetts predicts the world will end today. 1851 Yosemite Valley discovered in California .1857 Earthquake hits Tokyo; about 107,000 die. 1859 Scottish National Gallery opens in Edinburgh. 1859 Zoological Society of Philadelphia, first in US, incorporated. 1866 Congress authorizes national soldiers' homes. 1868 First US professional women's club, Sorosis, is founded in New York, NY. 1871 Journalist Henry M Stanley begins his famous expedition to Africa. 1874 US Grant's daughter Nellie marries in the White House. 1891 A Hatfield marries a McCoy, ends long feud in West Virginia; it started with an accusation of pig-stealing & lasted 20 years. 1917 Loretta Walsh becomes first female US Navy Petty Officer.1918 Germany launched the Somme offensive during World War I, hoping to break through the Allied line before American reinforcements could arrive. 1924 First foreign language course broadcast on US radio (WJZ, New York NY). 1924 Mass Investors Trust becomes first mutual fund set up in US. 1935 Persia officially renamed Iran. 1939 Kate Smith records "God Bless America," written in 1918 by Irving Berlin, for Victor Records.1941 Singer Paula Kelly joined Glenn Miller’s band (wife of one of Miller's backup singers, The Modernaires).1943 Assassination attempt on Hitler fails. 1944 General Eisenhower postpones South France invasion until after Normandy. 1945 Allied bombers began four days of raids over Germany during World War II. 1946 Kenny Washington signs with Rams, first black NFLer since 1933. 1946 UN sets up temporary HQ at Hunter (now Lehman) College in the Bronx.1947 President Truman signs Executive Order 9835 requiring all federal employees to have allegiance to the United States. 1952 Alan Freed presents Moondog Coronation Ball at old Cleveland Arena; 25,000 attend first rock & roll concert ever. 1953 NBA record 106 fouls & 12 players foul out (Boston-Syracuse). 1955 Brooklyn Bulletin asks Dodger fans not to call their team "Bums." 1961 Art Modell purchases Cleveland Browns for then record ($3,925,000) 1961 Beatles' first appearance at the Cavern Club. 1963 Alcatraz prison in San Francisco Bay was emptied of its last inmates on the order of Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy. 1964 Beatles' "She Loves You" single goes #1 & stays #1 for 2 weeks. 1964 UCLA completes undefeated NCAA basketball season (30-0). 1965 More than 3,000 civil rights demonstrators led by the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. began a march from Selma to Montgomery, Ala. 1966 Supreme Court reverses Massachusetts ruling that Fanny Hill is obscene.1968 "Royals" chosen as the name of new Kansas City American League Baseball franchise. 1969 John & Yoko stage their first bed-in for peace (Amsterdam Hilton). 1970 The Beatles' "Let It Be" entered the Billboard charts at number six, the highest debuting position ever for a record (to date).1972 US Supreme Court rules states can't require one-year residency to vote. 1973 Frank Mahovlich becomes fifth NHLer to score 500 goals.1974 Attempt made to kidnap Princess Anne in London's Pall Mall. 1975 Ethiopia ends monarchy after 3000 years. 1978 Padres fire Al Dark (second manager ever fired during spring training). 1979 Egyptian Parliament unanimously approve peace treaty with Israel.1980 On TV show Dallas, JR is shot. 1983 Only known typo on Time magazine cover (control=contol), all recalled. 1984 NFL owners passed the infamous anti-celebrating rule. 1984 Part of Central Park is named Strawberry Fields honoring John Lennon. 1984 Soviet sub crashes into USS aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk off Japan. 1985 Arthur Ashe is named to International Tennis Hall of Fame. 1986 Pittsburgh Associates buy Pittsburgh Pirates for $218 million. 1989 First sea test of Trident 2 missile self-destructs, Cape Canaveral. 1989 Randall Dale Adams, whose conviction for killing a police officer was overturned after the documentary The Thin Blue Line challenged evidence, was released from a Texas prison. 1991 27 lost at sea when two US Navy anti-submarine planes collide. 1994 Watne Gretzky ties Gordie Howe's NHL record of 801 goals. 1995 New Jersey officially dedicates the Howard Stern Rest Area along Route 295. 2000 A divided Supreme Court ruled the government lacked authority to regulate tobacco as an addictive drug.2005 Armed with a new law rushed through Congress and signed by President George W. Bush, the attorney for Terri Schiavo's parents pleaded with a judge to order the brain-damaged woman's feeding tube re-inserted (the judge later refused).

1630 The first legislation to prohibit gambling was enacted in Boston, Massachusetts. 1765 Britain enacted the Stamp Act to raise money from the American colonies.1882 Congress outlawed polygamy. 1894 Play-off competition for the coveted hockey award known as Lord Stanley’s Cup began as Montreal and Ottawa played for the first championship honors.1895 In what is generally regarded as the first public display of a movie projected onto a screen, Auguste and Louis Lumiere showed their first movie to an invited audience in Paris. 1933 During Prohibition, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed a measure to make wine and beer containing up to 3.2 percent alcohol legal. 1941 The Grand Coulee Dam in Washington state went into operation. 1945 The Arab League was formed with the adoption of a charter in Cairo, Egypt. 1948 The Voice of Firestone became the first commercial radio program to be carried simultaneously on both AM and FM radio stations.1956 Perry Como became the first major TV variety-show host to book a rock and roll act on his program (Carl Perkins sand "Blue Suede Shoes").1963 The Beatles' first album, Please Please Me, was released in Great Britain. 1965 Bob Dylan's album Bringing It All Back Home - his first featuring electric guitar - was released. 1969 UCLA defeated Purdue 92-72 to win the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) basketball championship, the first team to win three consecutive championships, all under legendary head coach John Wooden.1972 Congress sent the proposed Equal Rights Amendment to the Constitution to the states for ratification. 1978 Karl Wallenda, the 73-year-old patriarch of The Flying Wallendas high-wire act, fell to his death while attempting to walk a cable strung between two hotels in San Juan, Puerto Rico. 1980 Pink Floyd started a 4-week run in the #1 slot on the pop charts with their smash, "Another Brick in the Wall" (when they received their gold record, they opened it and put it on the stereo, hearing not their song but "Flowers on the Wall," by the Statler Brothers).1981 RCA put its Selectravision laser disc players on the market.1987 A 3,100-ton pile of rotting garbage left Islip, New York looking for a landfill willing to take all of its stinking contents (it was later sunk at sea).1990 A jury in Anchorage, Alaska, found former tanker captain Joseph Hazelwood innocent of three major charges in connection with the Exxon Valdez oil spill, but convicted him of a minor charge of negligent discharge of oil. 1991 High school instructor Pamela Smart, accused of manipulating her student-lover into killing her husband, was convicted in Exeter, N.H., of murder-conspiracy. 1995 Colin Ferguson was sentenced to life in prison for killing six people on a Long Island Rail Road commuter train in 1993. 1997 Tara Lipinski became the youngest women's world figure skating champion at age 14 years, 10 months. 2004 Hamas spiritual leader Sheik Ahmed Yassin was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City. 2006 The Basque separatist group ETA announced a permanent cease-fire with Spain.

Chart Toppers

1945A Little on the Lonely Side - The Guy Lombardo OrchestraAccentuate the Positive - Johnny Mercery Dreams are Getting Better All the Time - The Pied PipersThere’s a New Moon Over My Shoulder - Jimmie Davis

1953Till I Waltz Again with You - Teresa BrewerDon’t Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes - Perry ComoDoggie in the Window - Patti PageKaw-Liga - Hank Williams

1961Surrender - Elvis PresleyWhere the Boys Are - Connie FrancisDedicated to the One I Love - The ShirellesDon’t Worry - Marty Robbins

1765 Britain enacted the Quartering Act, requiring American colonists to provide temporary housing to British soldiers. 1792 Benjamin West became the first American artist to be selected president of the Royal Academy of London. 1882 Professor Robert Koch announced the discovery of the tuberculosis germ in Berlin, Germany. 1883 Long-distance telephone service was inaugurated between Chicago and New York City. 1932 Belle Baker hosted a radio variety show from a moving train, a first for radio broadcasting.1941 Glenn Miller began work on his first motion picture for 20th Century Fox, entitled Sun Valley Serenade.1944 In occupied Rome, the Nazis executed more than 300 civilians in reprisal for an attack by Italian partisans the day before that killed 32 German soldiers. 1949 The first Academy Awards (Oscars) were handed out.1955 The Tennessee Williams play, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, opened on Broadway.1958 Elvis Presley reported to local draft board 86 in Memphis, TN.1960 A U.S. appeals court ruled that the novel, Lady Chatterly’s Lover, was not obscene and could be sent through the mail.1973 The album Dark Side of the Moon by Pink Floyd was released. 1973 Professional track debuted with Kip Keino defeating Jim Ryun in the mile run at the International Track Association meet held in Los Angeles, CA.1976 The president of Argentina, Isabel Peron, was deposed by her country's military. 1977 Joseph Ratzinger, the future Pope Benedict XVI, was named archbishop of Munich and Freising in Germany. 1980 Capitol Records released some rare Beatles tracks, including stereo versions of "Penny Lane" and "She Loves You," sung by the group in German, under the title, "Sie Liebt Dich."1980 Roman Catholic Archbishop Oscar Arnulfo Romero was shot to death by gunmen as he celebrated Mass in San Salvador, El Salvador. 1985 Actress Jacqueline Bisset made her television debut in Forbidden, a Home Box Office (HBO) presentation.1988 Former national security aides Oliver L. North and John M. Poindexter pleaded innocent to Iran-Contra charges. 1989 At four minutes past midnight, the Exxon Valdez, a 987-foot supertanker loaded with 1,264,155 barrels of North Slope crude oil, ran aground on Bligh Reef in Prince William Sound, Alaska, spilling 11.2 million gallons of oil.1995 The House of Representatives passed a welfare reform package calling for the most profound changes in social programs since the New Deal. 1998 A 13-year-old boy and his 11-year-old cousin opened fire outside their school in Jonesboro, Ark., killing four students and a teacher and injuring 10. 1999 NATO launched airstrikes against Yugoslavia, the first time the alliance had attacked a sovereign country. 2002 Halle Berry became the first black performer to win a best actress Oscar, for her work in Monster's Ball.2005 The U.S. Supreme Court denied an appeal from the parents of Terri Schiavo to have a feeding tube reinserted into the severely brain-damaged woman.

Brian's blog received it's first comment, from porn director and recent AVN winner Eli Cross, who told him that he "officially" had his head up his ass. It had been unofficially for years. Now it's official. I think that you know you've made it when you've been digitally told off by the director of "Whoregasm" and "The Anal Team, 1 and 2"

Brian's blog received it's first comment, from porn director and recent AVN winner Eli Cross, who told him that he "officially" had his head up his ass. It had been unofficially for years. Now it's official. I think that you know you've made it when you've been digitally told off by the director of "Whoregasm" and "The Anal Team, 1 and 2"

Wow. I would say that it had to be a fake, but he actually took the time to point out his credentials before panning you. I thought seasoned vets like that knew enough to ignore Internet nut jobs, congratulations. You must have touched a nerve.

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"Mostly, I could tell, I made him feel uncomfortable. He didn't understand me, and he was sort of holding it against me. I felt the urge to reassure him that I was like everybody else, just like everybody else. But really there wasn't much point, and I gave up the idea out of laziness."

Wow. I would say that it had to be a fake, but he actually took the time to point out his credentials before panning you. I thought seasoned vets like that knew enough to ignore Internet nut jobs, congratulations. You must have touched a nerve.

I checked him out on myspace. He's a lunatic. Have you ever watched the director's commentary on a generally terrible movie and the director sounds like he thinks he just made Citizen Kane? It's a work-related phenomenon where you're so locked in to that world that you completely lose touch with reality and take what you're doing WAYYYYY too seriously. I think porn folk are so low on the food chain in Hollywood that they're all incredibly self-conscious anyway, and the rare smart ones have to spin these lofty philosophies about what they do in order to justify their idea that they should be taken just as seriously as everyone else. Chill out, Eli. You didn't just write Ulysses. You make movies of somewhat hot women sticking zucchini in their vajays and getting jizzed on.

I've often said that we are Hollywood stripped of the pretense of art. Porn isn't art, it's commerce. We make tools for masturbating, just like a hammer is a tool for driving nails. When I go into Home Depot, I might be tempted by the very expensive, bright, shiny hammer with the laminated hickory handle and the precision-balanced head, but if I can't hammer nails with the fucking thing once I get home, it's no damned good to me.

Actually....HE MIGHT BE THE SANEST PERSON AMONG US!!!

I still can't get over the fact that he took the time to comment on your blog. Do you think he was doing searches for reviews of the AVN Awards, just to see what people were writing about him and his friends?

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"Mostly, I could tell, I made him feel uncomfortable. He didn't understand me, and he was sort of holding it against me. I felt the urge to reassure him that I was like everybody else, just like everybody else. But really there wasn't much point, and I gave up the idea out of laziness."

0031 First Easter, according to calendar-maker Dionysius Exiguus.1306 Robert the Bruce crowned king of Scotland.1584 Sir Walter Raleigh renews Humphrey Gilbert's patent to explore North America. 1609 Henry Hudson embarks on an exploration for Dutch East India Co. 1634 Lord Baltimore founds Catholic colony of Maryland. 1655 Christiaan Huygens discovers Titan, (Saturn's largest satellite).1669 Mount Etna in Sicily erupts, destroying Nicolosi, killing 20,000. 1774 English Parliament passes Boston Port Bill. 1776 Continental Congress authorizes a medal for General George Washington.1813 First US flag flown in battle on the Pacific, aboard the frigate Essex.1821 Greece gains independence from Turkey (National Day).1856 A E Burnside patents Burnside carbine. 1857 Frederick Laggenheim takes first photo of a solar eclipse. 1863 First Army Medal of Honor awarded. 1882 First demonstration of pancake making (Department store in New York NY). 1896 Modern Olympics begin in Athens Greece.1900 US Socialist Party is formed at Indianapolis. 1902 Irving W Colburn patents sheet glass drawing machine. 1905 Rebel battle flags captured during war are returned to South. 1910 Chalmers Auto Co offers a new car to each leagues' batting champion. 1915 First submarine disaster; US F-4 sinks off Hawaii, killing 21. 1931 Scottsboro Boys (accused of raping a white woman) are arrested in Alabama. 1936 Detroit Red Wings beat Montréal Maroons in NHL longest game to date (2 hours 56 minutes 30 seconds).1937 Lionel Conacher misses on the first Stanley Cup penalty shot. 1937 Washington Daily News is first US newspaper with perfumed advertising page. 1939 Billboard Magazine introduces hillbilly (country) music chart.1943 Jimmy Durante & Garry Moore premiere on radio. 1944 RAF Sergeant Nickolas Alkemade survives a jump from his Lancaster bomber from 18,000 feet without a parachute.1954 RCA manufactures the first color TV set (12½" screen at $1,000).1957 Treaty of Rome establishes European Economic Community (Common Market). 1958 Sugar Ray Robinson is the first boxing champion to win 5 times. 1960 The first guided missile launched from nuclear powered sub (Halibut). 1961 Elvis Presley performs live in Hawaii in a benefit for the USS Arizona Memorial.1965 Martin Luther King Jr leads 25,000 to state capitol in Montgomery, AL. 1966 Beatles pose with mutilated dolls & butchered meat for the cover of the Yesterday & Today album (it is later pulled).1970 Concorde makes its first supersonic flight (700 mph).1971 Boston Patriots become New England Patriots. 1971 Tom Jones' "She's a Lady" goes gold.1972 America's LP America goes #1. 1972 Bobby Hull becomes the second NHLer to score 600 goals. 1982 Wayne Gretzky becomes the first NHL player to score 200 points in a season.1985 Edwin Meese III becomes US Attorney General. 1986 Supreme Court rules Air Force could ban wearing of yarmulkes. 1988 Robert E. Chambers Jr. pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter in the death of 18-year-old Jennifer Levin in New York City's so-called preppie murder case.1990 Fire in illegal NYC social club kills 87. 1992 British scientists find new largest perfect number (2 756839 -1 2 756839).1992 Cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev returned to Earth from the Mir space station after a 10-month stay, during which his native country, the Soviet Union, ceased to exist. 1994 American troops completed their withdrawal from Somalia. 1995 Boxer Mike Tyson released from jail after serving 3 years. 1996 Comet C/1996 B2 (Hyakutake) approaches within 0.1018 astronomical units (AUs) of Earth.1996 US issues newly-redesigned $100 bill.1996 An 81-day standoff by the antigovernment Freemen began at a ranch near Jordan, Mont. 1998 President Bill Clinton acknowledged during his Africa tour that "we did not act quickly enough" to stop the slaughter of 1 million Rwandans four years earlier. 2002 A powerful earthquake rocked Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan, killing as many as 1,000 people. 2003 The former mayor of Waterbury, Conn., Philip Giordano, was convicted of violating the civil rights of two preteen girls by sexually abusing them. 2004 Congress passed a law making it a separate offense to harm a fetus during a violent federal crime.

Chart Toppers

1948Now is the Hour - Bing CrosbyI’m Looking Over a Four Leaf Clover - The Art Moonie OrchestraBeg Your Pardon - Francis CraigI’ll Hold You in My Heart (Till I Can Hold You in My Arms) - Eddy Arnold

1804 The Louisiana Purchase was divided into the Territory of Orleans and the District of Louisiana. 1885 The Eastman Dry Plate and Film Co. of Rochester, N.Y., manufactured the first commercial motion picture film. 1936 The first telescope with a 200-inch-diameter, reflecting mirror was shipped from Corning, New York to Mt. Palomar Observatory in California.1937 Joe DiMaggio said he’d take Ty Cobb’s advice and use a 36 or 37-ounce baseball bat instead of a 40-ounce stick during that season, resulting in ‘Joltin’ Joe’ hitting .346 during the season with 46 home runs, the most he ever hit in a single year.1951 The U.S. Air Force flag was approved.1953 Dr. Jonas Salk announced a new vaccine to prevent poliomyelitis.1956 Red Buttons made his debut as a television actor in a presentation of Studio One on CBS television.1964 The musical Funny Girl, starring Barbra Streisand, opened on Broadway. 1969 Marcus Welby, M.D., a TV movie, was seen on ABC for the first time.1971 William Conrad starred as Cannon on CBS-TV for the first time.1971 East Pakistan proclaimed its independence, taking the name Bangladesh. 1972 The Los Angeles Lakers broke a National Basketball Association record by winning 69 of 82 games.1974 David Essex received a gold record for the hit, "Rock On."1975 Tommy, the film based on the rock opera by the group The Who, premiered in London.1977 Elvis Costello releases his first record, "Less Than Zero."1979 The Camp David peace treaty was signed by Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin and Egyptian President Anwar Sadat at the White House.1982 Groundbreaking ceremonies took place in Washington, D.C., for the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. 1987 The National Federation of High School Associations adopted the college distance three-point shot, with a perimeter of 21 feet from the center of the backboard.1992 A judge in Indianapolis sentenced former heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson to six years in prison for raping a Miss Black America contestant. 1992 The New York Rangers clinch their first NHL regular season championship in 50 years.1997 The bodies of 39 members of the Heaven's Gate techno-religious cult who had committed suicide were found inside a mansion in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. 1999 Dr. Jack Kevorkian was convicted of second-degree murder for giving a lethal injection to an ailing man whose death was shown on ''60 Minutes.'' 2000 Vladimir Putin was elected president of Russia. 2002 Arthur Andersen chief executive Joseph Berardino resigned, bowing to mounting pressure as a result of the accounting firm's role in the Enron scandal.

1965Eight Days a Week - The BeatlesStop! In the Name of Love - The SupremesThe Birds and the Bees - Jewel AkensI’ve Got a Tiger by the Tail - Buck Owens

1973Love Train - O’JaysAlso Sprach Zarathustra (2001) - DeodatoNeither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye) - GladysKnight & The PipsTeddy Bear Song - Barbara Fairchild

1981Keep on Loving You - REO SpeedwagonWoman - John LennonThe Best of Times - StyxAngel Flying Too Close to the Ground - Willie Nelson

1989The Living Years - Mike & The MechanicsEternal Flame - BanglesGirl You Know It’s True - Milli VanilliNew Fool at an Old Game - Reba McEntire

Quote of the Day

There is no kind of dishonesty into which otherwise good people more easily and frequently fall than that of defrauding the government. Benjamin Franklin, US author/diplomat/inventor/physicist/politician/printer (1706 - 1790)

1513 Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon sighted Florida. 1625 Charles I ascended the English throne upon the death of James I. 1790 The shoelace is invented.1794 President George Washington and Congress authorized creation of the U.S. Navy.1836 The first Mormon temple was dedicated, in Kirtland, Ohio. 1841 The first steam fire engine was tested in New York City.1860 The “covered gimlet screw with a ‘T’ handle” or corkscrew, was patented by M. L. Byrn of New York City.1866 Andrew Rankin patents the urinal. 1866 President Johnson vetoes civil rights bill; it later becomes 14th Amendment.1912 First Lady Helen (Nellie) Taft, wife of U.S. President William Howard Taft, and the Viscountess Chinda, wife of the Japanese Ambassador, planted the first two cherry trees in Washington D.C.1917 The Seattle Metropolitans, of the Pacific Coast League of Canada, defeated the Montreal Canadiens to become the first U.S. hockey team to win the Stanley Cup.1920 Film stars Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks were married.1931 Charlie Chaplin receives France's distinguished Legion of Honor.1931 New York Giant’s Manager John McGraw told reporters that night baseball would never supplant baseball in its natural setting, under a warm sun.1933 Polythene is discovered by Reginald Gibson & Eric William Fawcett.1940 Himmler orders building of Auschwitz concentration camp.1943 Blue Ribbon Town (with Groucho Marx) is first heard on CBS Radio.1945 Ella Fitzgerald and the Delta Rhythm Boys recorded the classic, "It’s Only a Paper Moon" for Decca Records.1945 During World War II, Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower told reporters in Paris that German defenses on the Western Front had been broken. 1945 Iwo Jima is occupied, after 22,000 Japanese & 6,000 US killed.1951 Frank Sinatra recorded "I’m a Fool to Want You" for Columbia.1952 Sun Records of Memphis begins releasing records.1955 Steve McQueen made his network TV debut on Goodyear Playhouse.1958 CBS Laboratories announced a new stereophonic record that was playable on ordinary LP phonographs (monaural).1962 Jacques Plante ties an NHL record, winning his 6th Vezina Trophy.1971 UCLA became the first team ever to win five consecutive NCAA basketball titles.1972 Adolph Rupp of the University of Kentucky retired after 42 years of coaching the Wildcats.1976 Washington, D.C.'s underground Metro train opens.1977 A KLM Boeing 747, attempting to take off, crashes into a Pan Am 747 on the Canary Island of Tenerife, killing 582 people. 1979 The Supreme Court rules 8-1 that cops can't randomly stop cars.1980 Mount St Helens becomes active after 123 years of dormancy.1985 Billy Dee Williams received a star on the famous Hollywood Walk of Fame.1997 Dexter King, son of Martin Luther King Jr., met with James Earl Ray, the man in prison for the assassination of the civil rights leader; Ray denied having anything to do with the shooting, to which King replied, "I believe you."1998 The Food and Drug Administration approved the drug Viagra, made by Pfizer, to fight male impotence. 2001 California regulators approved electricity rate hikes of up to 46 percent. 2002 A suicide bomber killed 29 Israelis during a Passover Seder in Netanya, Israel. 2003 Serbian police killed two major suspects in the assassination of Prime Minister Zoran Djindjic. 2006 Al-Qaida conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui testified at his federal trial that he was supposed to hijack a fifth airplane on Sept. 11, 2001, and fly it into the White House.

1797 Nathaniel Briggs of New Hampshire patented a device we commonly call the washing machine.1834 The U.S. Senate voted to censure President Andrew Jackson for the removal of federal deposits from the Bank of the United States. 1854 Britain and France declared war on Russia during the Crimean War. 1865 Outdoor advertising legislation was enacted in New York State, banning “painting on stones, rocks and trees.”1891 The first world championship for amateur weightlifters was held in London.1898 The Supreme Court ruled that a child born in the United States to Chinese immigrants was a U.S. citizen, and therefore could not be deported under the Chinese Exclusion Act. 1922 Bradley A. Fiske of Washington, D.C. patented a microfilm reading device.1930 The names of the Turkish cities of Constantinople and Angora were changed to Istanbul and Ankara, respectively. 1939 The Spanish Civil War ended as Madrid fell to the forces of Francisco Franco. 1944 WQXR radio in New York City, owned by The New York Times newspaper, banned singing commercials from its airwaves.1963 Sonny Werblin announced that the New York Titans of the American Football League were changing their name to the New York Jets.1964 Radio Caroline debuted as the first pirate radio station to broadcast off the coast of England.1967 Raymond Burr starred in a TV movie titled Ironside.1974 The group Blue Swede received a gold record for the single, "Hooked on a Feeling."1974 A streaker ran onto the set of The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson (he was arrested, but released, for “lack of evidence,” said Johnny.)1979 A series of accidents that began at 4 a.m. at Three Mile Island, Pennsylvania, brought the nuclear power plant close to a uranium core meltdown.1981 Blondie, featuring Debbie Harry, received a gold record for the tune, "Rapture."1985 Roger Waters of Pink Floyd made radio history as his Radio City Music Hall concert in New York was broadcast live using a new high-tech sound system called ‘holophonics.’1986 More than 6,000 radio stations of all format varieties (even Muzak) played "We are the World" simultaneously at 10:15 a.m. EST.2000 In a unanimous ruling, the Supreme Court sharply curtailed police power to rely on tips to stop and search people. 2002 The Arab League agreed on a peace plan that offered Israel normal relations in exchange for a full withdrawal from war-won lands and a Palestinian state. 2006 More than one million people poured into streets across France and strikers disrupted air, rail and bus travel in the largest nationwide protest over a youth labor law.

1847 U.S. forces led by Gen. Winfield Scott occupied the city of Veracruz after its Mexican defenders capitulated. 1848 For the first time in recorded history, Niagara Falls stopped flowing as an ice jam in the Niagara River above the rim of the falls caused the water to stop.1867 The British Parliament passed the North America Act to create the Dominion of Canada. 1882 The Knights of Columbus was chartered in Connecticut. 1914 Seven papers joined together to distribute the first newspaper rotogravure section (photo section).1943 Rationing of meat, butter and cheese began during World War II. 1951 Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were convicted of conspiracy to commit espionage for passing nuclear secrets to the Soviet Union. 1951 Rodgers and Hammerstein's The King and I opened on Broadway.1962 Jack Paar hosted NBC's Tonight Show for the final time. 1967 The first nationwide strike in the 30-year history of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) began, lasting for 13 days.1971 Army Lt. William L. Calley Jr. was convicted of murdering at least 22 Vietnamese civilians in the My Lai massacre (he spent three years under house arrest).1971 A jury in Los Angeles recommended the death penalty for Charles Manson and three female followers for the 1969 Tate-La Bianca murders (the sentences were later commuted).1973 The last U.S. combat troops left South Vietnam, ending America's direct military involvement in the Vietnam War.1973 After recording "On the Cover of 'Rolling Stone,'" Dr. Hook finally got a group shot on the cover of Jann Wenner’s popular rock magazine.1973 Hommy, the Puerto Rican version of the rock opera Tommy, opened in New York City.1974 Eight Ohio National Guardsmen were indicted on charges stemming from the shooting deaths of four students at Kent State University (they were later acquitted). 1982 The oldest soap opera on network television, Search for Tomorrow, jumped from CBS, where it grew in popularity for 30 years, to the daytime schedule on NBC.1992 Democratic presidential front-runner Bill Clinton acknowledged experimenting with marijuana "a time or two" while attending Oxford University, adding, "I didn't inhale and I didn't try it again."1999 The Dow Jones industrial average closed above 10,000 for the first time, at 10,006.78. 2002 Israel declared Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat an enemy and sent tanks and armored personnel carriers to fully isolate him in his headquarters in the West Bank town of Ramallah. 2006 Hamas formally took over the Palestinian government, with Ismail Haniyeh sworn in as the new prime minister. 2006 The U.N. Security Council demanded that Iran suspend uranium enrichment.

Every McDonald's commercial ends the same way: Prices and participation may vary. I wanna open a McDonald's and not participate in anything. I wanna be a stubborn McDonald's owner. "Cheeseburgers?" "Nope! We got spaghetti...and blankets. We're not affiliated with that clown. He attracts too many children."

This post has been edited by Bleedin-Blue: Mar 29 2007, 01:51 PM

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They say 'eh' instead of 'what' or 'duh'. That's the mighty power of Canada.

0239 BC First recorded perihelion passage of Halley's Comet.1533 Henry VIII divorces his first wife, Catherine of Aragon.1822 Florida became a U.S. territory. 1842 Dr. Crawford W. Long performed the first operation while a patient was anesthetized by ether.1858 Hyman L. Lipman of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania patented the pencil.1867 Secretary of State William H. Seward reached agreement with Russia to purchase the territory of Alaska for $7.2 million, a deal roundly ridiculed as "Seward's Folly."1870 The 15th amendment to the Constitution, giving black men the right to vote, was declared in effect. 1870 Texas was readmitted to the Union. 1909 The Queensboro Bridge, linking the New York boroughs of Manhattan and Queens, opened. 1923 The Audubon Ballroom in New York City was the scene of the first dance marathon.1932 Amelia Earhart becomes first woman to fly solo cross the Atlantic.1945 The Soviet Union invaded Austria during World War II. 1948 Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin ordered all road and rail access to Berlin, Germany blocked.1953 Albert Einstein announces his revised Unified Field Theory.1964 One of television’s best known game shows, Jeopardy, developed by Merv Griffin, aired on NBC-TV for the first time.1967 Cover photo of the Beatles' Sergeant Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band is photographed.1971 The Bee Gees received a gold record for the single, "Lonely Days."1974 John Denver reached the top spot on the music charts with his hit, "Sunshine on My Shoulders."1975 Ron Lalonde scores the first hat trick by a Washington Capital.1981 President Ronald Reagan was shot and seriously injured outside a Washington, D.C., hotel by John W. Hinckley Jr (also wounded were White House press secretary James Brady, a Secret Service agent and a District of Columbia police officer).1983 Basketball player Larry Bird of the Boston Celtics set a regular season Celtic scoring record as he pumped in 53 points.1987 Vincent van Gogh’s Sunflowers brought $39.85 million, more than triple the record for an auctioned painting.1995 Pope John Paul II issued an encyclical condemning abortion and euthanasia as crimes that no human laws could legitimize. 1998 German automaker BMW bought Rolls-Royce for $570 million. 1999 A jury in Portland, Ore., ordered Philip Morris to pay $81 million to the family of a man who died of lung cancer after smoking Marlboros for four decades. 2006 American reporter Jill Carroll, a freelancer for The Christian Science Monitor, was released after 82 days as a hostage in Iraq.

Chart Toppers

1945My Dreams are Getting Better All the Time - The Pied PipersA Little on the Lonely Side - The Frankie Carle Orchestra (vocal: PaulAllen)Accentuate the Positive - Johnny MercerShame on You - Spade Cooley

1953Till I Waltz Again with You - Teresa BrewerDon’t Let the Stars Get in Your Eyes - Perry ComoPretend - Nat King ColeKaw-Liga - Hank Williams

Tull was educated at St John's College, Oxford and Gray's Inn. Influenced by the early Age of Enlightenment, he is considered to be one of the early proponents of a scientific (and especially empirical) approach to agriculture. He helped transform agricultural practices by inventing or improving numerous implements, the most notable being the seed drill, which he invented in 1701 while living in Crowmarsh Gifford. Before the seed drill was introduced, seeds were sown simply by being cast upon the ground, to germinate (or fail to germinate) where they landed. The seed drill significantly improved this process, by creating a hole of specific depth, dropping in a seed, and covering it over, three rows at a time. The result was an increased rate of germination, and a much-improved crop yield (up to eight times).

1492 King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain issued an edict expelling those Jews unwilling to convert to Christianity. 1880 The first electric street lights ever installed by a municipality were turned on in Wabash, IN.1889 French engineer Alexandre Gustave Eiffel unfurled the French tricolor from atop the Eiffel Tower to mark its completion. 1900 The W.E. Roach Company was the first automobile company to advertise in a national magazine (The Saturday Evening Post).1917 The United States took possession of the Virgin Islands from Denmark. 1918 Daylight saving time went into effect throughout the United States for the first time.1923 The first U.S. dance marathon was held in New York City. 1943 The Rodgers and Hammerstein musical Oklahoma! opened on Broadway. 1945 The Glass Menagerie by Tennessee Williams opened on Broadway. 1949 Newfoundland entered the confederation as Canada's 10th province. 1968 President Lyndon B. Johnson made a surprise announcement that he would not run for another term in office.1968 Tony Jacklin became the first Englishman to win a modern-day U.S. golf tournament when he won the Greater Jacksonville Open.1970 A bankruptcy referee granted the owner of the Seattle Pilots permission to sell the major-league baseball franchise to investors in Milwaukee, WI.1972 Swimmer Mark Spitz was presented the Amateur Athletic Union’s coveted Sullivan Award as the outstanding amateur athlete of 1971.1976 The New Jersey Supreme Court ruled that coma patient Karen Anne Quinlan could be disconnected from her respirator (Quinlan remained comatose and died in 1985).1992 The U.N. Security Council voted to ban flights and arms sales to Libya, branding it a terrorist state for shielding six men accused of blowing up Pan Am Flight 103 and a French airliner. 1995 Singer Selena, 23, was shot to death in Corpus Christi, Texas, by the founder of her fan club. 1995 Baseball players agreed to end a 232-day strike after a judge granted a preliminary injunction against club owners. 1999 Four New York City police officers were charged with murder for killing Amadou Diallo, an unarmed African immigrant, in a hail of bullets (the officers were acquited in 2000). 2004 Four American civilian contractors were killed in Fallujah, Iraq; frenzied crowds dragged their burned, mutilated bodies and strung two of them from a bridge. 2004 Air America, intended as a liberal voice in network talk radio, made its debut on five stations. 2005 Terri Schiavo died at a hospice in Pinellas Park, Fla., 13 days after her feeding tube was removed in a right-to-die dispute that engulfed the courts, Congress and the White House.

1760 The first refernce to April Fool's Day appeared in Poor Robin's Almanack: “The first of April, some do say, is set apart for All Fools’ Day, but why the people call it so, nor I nor they themselves do know.”1789 The U.S. House of Representatives held its first full meeting in New York City; Frederick Muhlenberg of Pennsylvania was elected the first speaker. 1826 Samuel Morey of Oxford, New Hampshire patented the internal combustion engine.1853 Cincinnati, Ohio, became the first U.S. city to pay its firefighters a regular salary.1864 The first travel accident policy was issued by the Travelers Insurance Company.1918 The Royal Air Force was established in Britain. 1930 Leo Hartnett of the Chicago Cubs broke the altitude record for a catch by catching a baseball dropped from the Goodyear blimp 800 feet over Los Angeles, CA.1931 Pitcher Jackie Mitchell was signed by the Chattanooga Baseball Club, making her the first woman in organized baseball.1933 Nazi Germany began persecuting Jews with a boycott of Jewish-owned businesses. 1939 The United States recognized the Franco government in Spain following the end of the Spanish Civil War. 1945 American forces invaded Okinawa during World War II.1946 Tidal waves struck the Hawaiian Islands, killing more than 170 people. 1956 Chet Huntley began his successful news career with NBC.1957 All of Great Britain was fooled this April Fool’s Day by England’s famous newscaster, Richard Dimbleby; as he was wrapping up the day’s news on Panorama, the BBC’s current affairs program, he reported about the “spring spaghetti crop in southern Switzerland,” with the filmed report showed some ten pounds of spaghetti being picked from a tree.1960 The first weather satellite, TIROS-1, was launched from Cape Canaveral. 1963 The daily TV serial, General Hospital, began its long and popular run on ABC-TV. 1970 President Richard Nixon signed a measure banning cigarette advertising on radio and TV. 1984 Singer Marvin Gaye was shot to death by his father at age 45. 1985 George Plimpton played an April Fool’s joke on readers of Sports Illustrated, introducing the entire nation to Sidd Finch, a 28-year-old aspiring monk, who could throw a 168 mph fastball.1985 Unranked Villanova defeated top-rated Georgetown 66-64 to win the NCAA basketball championship.1987 In his first major speech on the epidemic, President Ronald Reagan told doctors in Philadelphia, "We've declared AIDS public health enemy No. 1." 1987 Steve Newman became the first man to walk solo around the world.1996 Baseball umpire John McSherry died after collapsing during a game between the Cincinnati Reds and Montreal Expos. 1999 A New Jersey man was arrested and charged with originating the "Melissa" e-mail virus, which infected more than 1 million computers worldwide and caused more than $80 million in damage (David Smith served just 20 months in federal prison in exchange for helping the FBI track down the authors of other computer viruses).2001 Former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic was arrested on corruption charges after a 26-hour armed standoff with police at his Belgrade villa. 2003 American troops rescued Army Pfc. Jessica Lynch from a hospital in Nasiriyah, Iraq, where she had been held prisoner since her unit was ambushed nine days earlier.

1513 Spanish explorer Juan Ponce de Leon landed in Florida. 1792 Congress passed the Coinage Act, which authorized establishment of the U.S. Mint. 1860 The first Italian Parliament met at Turin. 1865 Confederate President Jefferson Davis and most of his Cabinet fled the Confederate capital of Richmond, Va. 1872 G.B. Brayton of Boston, MA received a patent for the gas-powered street car.1889 Charles Hall patented aluminum.1896 Madison Square Garden in New York City hosted the season premiere of the Barnum and Bailey Circus.1902 The first motion picture theatre opened in Los Angeles (The Electric Theatre).1917 President Woodrow Wilson asked Congress to declare war against Germany, saying, "The world must be made safe for democracy." 1932 Aviator Charles Lindbergh, through an intermediary, paid $50,000 ransom in a New York cemetery to a man who promised to return his kidnapped son (the child was found dead the following month; the ransom money was eventually traced to Bruno Hauptmann, who was executed for the crime). 1942 Glenn Miller and his orchestra recorded "American Patrol" for Victor Records.1954 Carl ‘Bobo’ Olson defeated Kid Gavilan to retain the world middleweight boxing title. 1956 The Edge of Night and [/i]As the World Turns[/i] were seen for the first time on CBS-TV.1969 The Milwaukee Bucks of the National Basketball Association signed Lew Alcindor (Kareem Abdul Jabbar) for a reported $1,400,000 five-year contract.1972 Actor Burt Reynolds appeared naked in Cosmopolitan magazine.1977 Stevie Wonder’s tribute to Duke Ellington, "Sir Duke," was released.1978 Dallas was seen for the first time on CBS-TV.1982 Argentina seized the disputed Falkland Islands from Britain. 1984 John Thompson became the first black coach to lead his team to the NCAA college basketball championship as Georgetown’s Hoyas defeated Houston 84-7.1985 The NCAA Rules Committee adopted the 45-second shot clock for men’s basketball, to begin in the 1986 season.1992 Mob boss John Gotti was convicted in New York of murder and racketeering. 2002 Israel seized control of Bethlehem; Palestinian gunmen forced their way into the Church of the Nativity, the traditional birthplace of Jesus, beginning a 39-day standoff. 2005 Pope John Paul II, who helped topple communism in Europe and left a deeply conservative stamp on the church that he led for 26 years, died in his Vatican apartment at age 84.

1988Man in the Mirror - Michael JacksonGet Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car - Billy OceanI Want Her - Keith SweatLove Will Find Its Way to You - Reba McEntire

Quote of the Day

You need only reflect that one of the best ways to get yourself a reputation as a dangerous citizen these days is to go about repeating the very phrases which our founding fathers used in the struggle for independence. Charles Austin Beard, US historian (1874 - 1948)

1776 Harvard College conferred the first honorary Doctor of Laws degree to George Washington.1790 Revenue Marine Service (US Coast Guard), created.1800 Martha Washington became the first U.S. President’s wife to be allowed to ‘frank’ mail (send free of postage).1829 James Carrington of Wallingford, CT patented the coffee mill.1860 Pony Express delivery service begins in St. Joseph, MO.1882 Outlaw Jesse James was shot to death in St. Joseph, Mo., by Robert Ford, a member of his gang. 1933 First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt informed newspaper reporters that beer would be served at the White House.1933 Then longest North American hockey game requires a 1:44:46 overtime as Maple Leaf Ken Doraty scores to beat the Canadiens 1-0.1946 Lt. General Masaharu Homma, the Japanese commander responsible for the Bataan Death March, was executed in the Philippines. 1948 President Harry S. Truman signed the Marshall Plan, which allocated more than $5 billion in aid to help 16 European countries recover from World War II.1949 Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis debuted on radio in an NBC program that ran until 1952.1952 Harry Belafonte recorded his first songs for RCA Victor at Manhattan Center in New York City.1953 TV Guide was published for the first time.1955 Fred Astaire appeared on television for the first time on The Toast of the Town, with host, Ed Sullivan.1962 Race jockey Eddie Arcaro retired with a career record of 15,327 victories for total winnings of $12,265,455.1965 Bob Dylan appeared on the pop music charts for the first time as Subterranean Homesick Blues entered the Top 40 at number 39.1968 Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his "mountaintop" speech to a rally of striking sanitation workers in Memphis, Tenn., less than 24 hours before he was assassinated. 1968 North Vietnam agreed to meet with U.S. representatives to set up preliminary peace talks. 1975 Bobby Fischer is stripped of the world chess title for refusing to defend it.1979 Jane Byrne became the first female mayor in Chicago’s history.1982 John Chancellor stepped down as anchor of the The NBC Nightly News.1985 The famed Brown Derby restaurant in Hollywood closed after 57 years.1986 US national debt hits $2,000,000,000,000.1988 Mario Lemieux wins the NHL scoring title, stopping Gretzky's 7-year streak. 1988 The New Jersey Devils beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4-3 in OT, to clinch their first-ever playoff spot.1996 An Air Force jetliner carrying Commerce Secretary Ron Brown crashed in Croatia, killing all 35 people aboard. 1996 Unabomber Theodore Kaczynski was arrested. 1998 The Dow Jones industrial average climbed above 9,000 for the first time. 2000 A federal judge in Washington ruled that Microsoft Corp. had violated U.S. antitrust laws by keeping "an oppressive thumb" on competitors during the race to link Americans to the Internet. 2004 Surrounded by police, five suspects in the Madrid railway bombings blew themselves up in a building outside the Spanish capital, also killing a special forces agent. 2006 Former Liberian President Charles Taylor pleaded not guilty before an international war crimes tribunal in Sierra Leone, denying he'd helped destabilize West Africa through killings, sexual slavery and sending children into combat.

1965Stop! In the Name of Love - The SupremesI’m Telling You Now - Freddie & The DreamersShotgun - Jr. Walker & The All StarsKing of the Road - Roger Miller

1973Killing Me Softly with His Song - Roberta FlackAlso Sprach Zarathustra (2001) - DeodatoNeither One of Us (Wants to Be the First to Say Goodbye) – Gladys Knight & The PipsKeep Me in Mind - Lynn Anderson

1818 Congress decided the U.S. flag would consist of 13 red and white stripes and 20 stars, with a new star to be added for every new state. 1841 President William Henry Harrison died of pneumonia one month after his inauguration, becoming the first U.S. president to die in office. 1850 The city of Los Angeles was incorporated. 1859 Daniel Emmett introduced "I Wish I was in Dixie’s Land" (later named Dixie) in New York City.1887 Susanna Medora Salter became the first woman elected mayor of an American community: Argonia, Kan. 1902 British financier Cecil Rhodes left $10 million in his will to provide scholarships for Americans at Oxford University in England. 1914 The first known serialized moving picture opened in New York City (The Perils of Pauline).1932 Professor C.G. King of the University of Pittsburgh isolated vitamin C after five years of research.1939 Glenn Miller recorded his theme song, "Moonlight Serenade," for Bluebird Records.1945 U.S. forces liberated the Nazi death camp Ohrdruf in Germany. 1949 Twelve nations, including the United States, signed the North Atlantic Treaty. 1954 Maestro Arturo Toscanini conducted his last concert with the NBC Symphony Orchestra at Carnegie Hall in New York City.1964 The Beatles set an all-time record on the Top 100 chart of Billboard magazine with all five of the top songs (Can’t Buy Me Love, Twist and Shout, She Loves You, I Want to Hold Your Hand, and Please Please Me)1967 Johnny Carson quit The Tonight Show (he returned three weeks later with an additional $30,000 a week).1968 Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was shot to death in Memphis, Tenn., at age 39.1968 Bobby Goldsboro received a gold record for the single, "Honey."1971 Veterans stadium in Philadelphia, PA was dedicated.1974 Hank Aaron of the Atlanta Braves tied Babe Ruth's career home run record by hitting his 714th round-tripper in Cincinnati. 1975 A U.S. Air Force transport plane evacuating Vietnamese orphans crashed shortly after takeoff from Saigon, killing more than 130 people, most of them children. 1981 Henry Cisneros became the first Mexican-American elected mayor of a major U.S. city: San Antonio, Texas. 1984 Bob Bell retired as Bozo the Clown on WGN-TV in Chicago, IL.1991 Sen. John Heinz, R-Penn., and six other people were killed when a helicopter collided with Heinz's plane over a schoolyard in Merion, Pa. 1999 The Colorado Rockies beat the San Diego Padres 8-2 in baseball's first season opener held in Mexico. 2003 U.S. forces seized Saddam International Airport outside Baghdad. 2003 Sammy Sosa of the Chicago Cubs became the 18th major league baseball player to hit 500 career homers, connecting for a solo shot in a 10-9 loss to Cincinnati. 2006 The Iraq tribunal announced new criminal charges against Saddam Hussein and six others, accusing them of genocide and crimes against humanity stemming from a 1980s crackdown against Kurds.

Read, every day, something no one else is reading. Think, every day, something no one else is thinking. Do, every day, something no one else would be silly enough to do. It is bad for the mind to be always part of unanimity.Christopher Morley, US author & journalist (1890 - 1957)

1968 Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr. was shot to death in Memphis, Tenn., at age 39.

One can only wonder at what the world would be like had that assassination not come to pass:

"Like an unchecked cancer, hate corrodes the personality and eats away its vital unity. Hate destroys a man's sense of values and his objectivity. It causes him to describe the beautiful as ugly and the ugly as beautiful, and to confuse the true with the false and the false with the true."

The ultimate weakness of violence is that it is a descending spiral, begetting the very thing it seeks to destroy. Instead of diminishing evil, it multiplies it. Through violence you may murder the liar, but you cannot murder the lie, nor establish the truth. Through violence you may murder the hater, but you do not murder hate. In fact, violence merely increases hate. So it goes. Returning violence for violence multiplies violence, adding deeper darkness to a night already devoid of stars. Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that. Hate multiplies hate, violence multiplies violence, and toughness multiplies toughness in a descending spiral of destruction.... The chain reaction of evil - hate begetting hate, wars producing more wars - must be broken, or we shall be plunged into the dark abyss of annihilation.

I was really pissed off when a friend gave me shit about this quote like I was for appeasing terrorists or some garbage. Nice guy, but a fucking douchebag on occasion.

2348 BC Noah's ark grounded, Mount Ararat (calculated date) 1614 American Indian princess Pocahontas married English colonist John Rolfe in Virginia. 1792 George Washington cast the first presidential veto, rejecting a congressional measure for apportioning representatives among the states. 1827 James H. Hackett became the first American actor to appear abroad as he performed at Covent Garden in London, England.1869 Daniel Bakeman, the last surviving soldier of the Revolutionary War, died at the age of 109.1887 In Tuscumbia, Ala., teacher Anne Sullivan taught her blind and deaf pupil, Helen Keller, the meaning of the word "water" as spelled out in the manual alphabet.1895 Playwright Oscar Wilde lost his criminal libel case against the Marquess of Queensberry, who had accused the writer of homosexual practices. 1915 Jess Willard knocked out Jack Johnson in the 26th round to win the heavyweight boxing championship held in Havana, Cuba.1923 Firestone Tire and Rubber Company of Akron, OH began the first regular production of balloon tires.1933 The first operation to remove a lung was performed at Barnes Hospital in St. Louis, MO.1951 Julius and Ethel Rosenberg were sentenced to death for conspiring to commit espionage for the Soviet Union. 1954 Elvis Presley records his debut single, "That's All Right."1955 Richard J. Daley was elected mayor of Chicago, IL.1958 Johnny Mathis’ album, Johnny’s Greatest Hits, on Columbia Records, made it to the pop music charts, remaining on the charts for a record 490 weeks.1966 Timothy Leary spoke at New York’s Town Hall and compared LSD to a microscope saying that the drug “is to psychology what the microscope is to biology.”1982 Record World magazine ceased publication and filed for bankruptcy protection.1983 The New York Mets' Tom Seaver sets a record with his 14th National League Opening Day assignment.1984 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar become the all-time NBA regular season scoring leader, breaking previous mark of 31,419 points held by Wilt Chamberlain.1985 Broadcasters banded together to play the single, "We Are the World," at 10:50 a.m. E.S.T.1987 The FOX Broadcasting Company, under the direction of media and publishing baron Rupert Murdoch, started with two Sunday night offerings: Married......With Children and The Tracey Ullman Show.1987 Wayne Gretzky wins his7th straight NHL scoring title.1993 The Florida Marlins play their first game, beating the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-3.1993 The Colorado Rockies play their first game, losing to the New York Mets 3-0.1999 Libya surrendered two suspects in the 1988 bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Scotland to a U.N. representative. 2006 Katie Couric announced she was leaving NBC's Today show to become anchor of The CBS Evening News.

1830 The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints was organized by Joseph Smith in Fayette, N.Y. 1862 The Civil War battle of Shiloh began in Tennessee. 1896 The first modern Olympic Games began in Athens, Greece.1909 Commodore Robert Peary and Matthew H. Henson, Peary’s servant, became the first men to reach the North Pole.1916 Charlie Chaplin signed a movie contract with the Mutual Film Corporation.1917 Congress approved a declaration of war against Germany.1925 Eddie Cantor recorded the standard, "If You Knew Susie," for Columbia Records.1927 William P. MacCracken, Jr. earned license number ‘1’ when the Department of Commerce issued the first aviator’s license.1931 Little Orphan Annie, the comic strip character developed by Harold Gray, came to life on the NBC Blue network.1945 This is Your FBI debuted on ABC radio.1956 Capitol Tower, the home of Capitol Records in Hollywood, CA, was dedicated.1957 Trolley cars in New York City completed their final runs.1958 Arnold Palmer won his first major pro golf tournament by capturing the Masters in Augusta, GA.1959 Hal Holbrook opened in the critically acclaimed, off-Broadway presentation of Mark Twain Tonight.1971 Rolling Stones Records was formed to promote the hits of The Rolling Stones.1973 The Stylistics received a gold record for their ballad hit, "Break Up to Make Up."1974 The first concert film featuring a soundtrack in quadraphonic sound opened at the Ziegfeld Theatre (Ladies and Gentlemen: The Rolling Stones).1983 Interior Secretary James Watt banned the Beach Boys from the 4th of July celebration on the Washington Mall, saying rock 'n' roll bands attract the "wrong element." 1985 The country group Alabama went five-for-five as the album 40 Hour Week grabbed the top spot on the Billboard country chart; the group had a number one album for each of the previous five years.1987 Boxing great Sugar Ray Leonard won a 2-1 decision in a stunning upset over Marvelous Marvin Hagler in a bout held in Las Vegas, NV.1987 Los Angeles Dodgers executive Al Campanis said on ABC's "Nightline" that blacks "may not have some of the necessities" to hold managerial jobs in major-league baseball (Campanis resigned two days later). 1994 Supreme Court Justice Harry A. Blackmun announced his retirement. 1994 The presidents of Rwanda and Burundi were killed in a plane crash near Rwanda's capital. 1998 The Dow Jones industrial average closed above 9,000 points for the first time. 1998 Pakistan successfully tested a medium-range missile capable of striking neighboring India. 2001 Algerian national Ahmed Ressam, accused of bringing explosives into the United States days before the millennium celebrations, was convicted twice in the same day - first in France for belonging to a group supporting Islamic militants, then in Los Angeles on terror charges. 2001 Pacific Gas and Electric filed for bankruptcy. 2004 Jordan's military court convicted eight Muslim militants and sentenced them to death for the 2002 killing of U.S. aid official Laurence Foley in a terror conspiracy linked to al-Qaida. 2004 The University of Connecticut became the first school to win the NCAA Division I men's and women's basketball titles in the same season as the women's team beat Tennessee 70-61 for their third consecutive championship.

2004 The University of Connecticut became the first school to win the NCAA Division I men's and women's basketball titles in the same season as the women's team beat Tennessee 70-61 for their third consecutive championship.

Woooooo!

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Behind the Press"Hey, look. Somebody put the lead in the first paragraph." -- From Overheard in the NewsroomAbout another Reporter entering the newsroom after an intense interview: Reporter #1: “Look at him, he’s got that after-sex glow.”Reporter #2: “That’s the glow I get when a good story comes together.” -- Overheard in the Newsroom